Tom Petty: Sad And Unexpected Deaths

Today at the Scamp4553 studios, we are going to spend today's journal honoring one of rock's many icons that has just been added to the list of high-profile names that we have lost in 2017. Strange situations took place regarding the passing of Tom Petty yesterday, which was October 2nd of 2017. While we were already in the crossfire of the terrible Las Vegas massacre, premature news about Tom Petty passing away was delivered to the public with a sorrowful reaction. Tom Petty was found unconscious late on Sunday and was admitted to the hospital as his cardiac arrest had begun, and he was still trying to cling onto life throughout Monday, even when news outlets such as Loudwire put articles up announcing that he had died. The heartbreaking thing is that Tom Petty would not make it out of the cardiac arrest alive, and he passed on into the afterlife around 8:40 pm last night. I was waiting until it was actually confirmed that he had passed because it felt uncomfortable for me to do so without the confirmation. That's considering I first got informed about this shortly after I posted yesterday's scathing journal, and then I saw reports that it wasn't confirmed yet, so I decided to wait until now. 

I will admit that I wasn't as familiar with Tom Petty's work while he was alive. But, since I have this thing where whenever someone in the music scene dies, I always make the attempt to purchase something from them or listen to their material if I had never heard of them just as a salutation or a piece of respect towards the deceased artist for their accomplishments. I've mentioned that before, and it certainly applies with someone like Tom Hardy, whose career spanned over 40 years. Of course, everybody knows about songs like "Free Falling", "You Got Lucky", and "The Waiting", which were all #1 songs on the US Rock charts back in the 80's, and Tom Petty and The Heartbreakers as a band has sold millions of records, some of the highest selling being albums like their self-titled, "Damn The Torpedos" which was certified 3X Platinum in the US, and "Into The Great Wide Open", as well as solo works such as the 5X Platinum effort "Full Moon Fever". They also have a Greatest Hits compilation that has gone Diamond, selling over 7 million copies and having a 12X Platinum certification. Of course, this is all looking at what Tom Petty has accomplished as a musician over his 47-year career, and while I've probably heard some of this material and not really known who it was by, I have a feeling that if and when I check Tom Petty out in full, I'd probably enjoy what I would hear and recognize some of these songs. 

Rest in peace to another iconic musician in 2017. This is clearly something that is continuing the burn of the past few days, but at least with this we can find some positive in the negative. The negative side is that we've lost an icon in the music industry that will no longer get to make new music and all of Tom Petty's loved ones will miss him dearly and deeply, and that goes for fans and even people who respect his accomplishments. We've definitely lost many stars this year in keeping with 2017's long list of celebrity deaths as well as 2016's list. The positive side of the coin, however, is that we still have a legacy filled with material that deserves to be checked out. The stuff that Tom Petty has been involved with is always accessible at any point in the day, and will be scoped out for generations to come. So, once again, I say to Tom Petty, rest in peace, and have the time of your life in the afterlife. You will be missed.